Chapter 3 - The Unthinkable Proposal
The words hung in the cramped kitchen air, refusing to settle. Emma stared at Adrian Marston, wondering if the shock of the past forty-eight hours had finally caused her mind to fracture.
"You're out of your mind," she breathed out, shaking her head.
"I am perfectly sane," Adrian replied, his tone chillingly rational. "Think about the logistics, Emma. Port Mercy is a small town. For the next six months, every charity gala, board meeting, and grocery store trip will subject you to whispered pity and smug gossip from people who derive joy from other people's misery. If you walk into those rooms alone, you are the victim. If you walk into those rooms as Mrs. Adrian Marston, you are untouchable."
"That is the craziest reason to get married I have ever heard in my life!" Emma stood up, nearly knocking her tea over. "We aren't in love, Adrian! We've barely spoken two dozen words to each other in three years! You're Cole's brother!"
"Cole is a footnote in your history now," Adrian said, rising slowly to his feet, towering over her with an imposing grace. "As for love—love is a volatile emotion that my brother and your sister mistook for passion. What I am offering you is stability, absolute protection, mutual respect, and an alliance that will permanently ensure nobody in this town ever dares to look down on you again."
"I don't need protection," Emma snapped, her pride flaring up. "I can take care of myself!"
"Can you?" Adrian stepped closer, his dark eyes searching her face with an intensity that made it impossible to look away. "Did you enjoy sitting on that stone planter on the harbor promenade forty-eight hours ago, feeling like your entire world had dissolved? Did you enjoy the humiliation of knowing your own sister betrayed you under the same roof?"
His words hit her like a physical blow, stripping away her defensive armor. A tear slipped down her cheek, hot and stinging, but she refused to look away.
"Why do you care, Adrian?" she asked, her voice trembling. "Why are you doing this? You don't do things out of charity."
"No," Adrian agreed quietly, closing the distance between them until she could feel the heat radiating from his chest. "I don't do charity. When I saw you sitting on that cold stone, shivering in my coat, something shifted, Emma. I watched my brother throw away a diamond while chasing cheap glass, and I realized I have spent my entire life building an empire while letting unworthy people handle what matters. I want to fix this. I want to give you a life where nobody ever dares to hurt you again."
"And what do you get out of it?" she whispered, her lips parting.
"An equal," Adrian said without hesitation. "A woman with integrity, strength, and backbone. A partner who stands beside me at the head of the Marston family table, rather than hiding behind it."
Emma looked into his eyes—eyes devoid of deceit, full of a fierce, terrifying certainty. It was insane. It was impulsive. It was the most reckless thing she could possibly do.
And compared to the safe, predictable life with Cole that had just exploded in her face, it was the most intoxicating offer she had ever received.
"Saturday," Emma whispered, the word escaping before her brain could stop it. "The venue is still booked for Saturday."
May you like
Adrian’s mouth curved into a slow, triumphant smile.
"Then we have a wedding to salvage."
